Watch the cluster of quakes hitting Wellington as home videos capture the earthquake as it strikes. Courtesy: New Zealand Herald, YouTube/minimumeffort2,HunterArchitecture,weathermedia,

A SWARM of earthquakes that rocked New Zealand, damaging buildings and shattering nerves in the capital of Wellington may carry on for weeks.

Almost 120 aftershocks have been recorded since the magnitude 6.5 quake which struck in the Cook Strait at 5.09pm (3.09pm AEST) Sunday, including a spate of tremors reaching between 4.5 and 4.9 in magnitude struck the middle of the country about 3.15am (1.15am AEST) Monday, The New Zealand Herald reports.

Streams of earthquake notifications have registered with GeoNet, from as low as magnitude 2.9 up to 4.9, with as many as three being felt within a 10-minute period.

Four people were injured during the 20 second-long tremor.

A damaged office building in Wellington after the massive quake.

Workers in the New Zealand capital are being urged to stay away from the central city following the quakes.

No one was seriously injured and there was no tsunami risk, but the quake is expected to disrupt life in Wellington during the early part of the week.

Rail services have been cancelled while the tracks are checked and a lack of replacement buses will mean many people are forced to stay home on Monday morning.

Debris from an old office building that were damaged is seen after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit Wellington. AFP / Marty Melville

Victoria University is closed as a precaution while buildings are checked.

The quake, which hit at 5.09pm (3.09pm AEST) on Sunday, was centred 20km east of Seddon in Marlborough, at a depth of 17km.

People were sent scrambling for cover as it knocked out power, cracked building facades, burst pipes and broke windows in Wellington.

Students photograph a crack on the ground on the wharf on the waterfront after a 6.5 magnitude earthquake hit Wellington. AFP / Marty Melville

Parts of parliament, other Wellington buildings and port facilities have been damaged. A chunk of concrete fell from a building on Featherston St and shipping containers reportedly toppled.

Buildings were evacuated, including TSB arena on Wellington's waterfront and the Mercure Hotel.

Aftershocks continued through the night, with quakes also reported near Hanmer Springs - up to 5.3 magnitude - in the South Island and Paraparaumu, north of Wellington.

There were no serious injuries reported. However, a man aged in his forties was knocked out by a falling television in his Wellington apartment.

Another person attached to a medical machine was shaken out of bed.

Both people were treated and were fine, Wellington Free Ambulance spokesman Daniel Paul said.

Wellington regional Civil Defence controller Bruce Pepperell said engineers would check bridges and other infrastructure in daylight on Monday morning.

Wellington Mayor Celia Wade-Brown urged people to stay at home to allow CBD buildings to be checked.

Acting district commander, Superintendent Sue Schwalger, says extra staff were brought in so police could maintain a high profile in the city on Sunday night.

However, Inspector Ian Harris of police central communications said it had been a reasonably quiet night.

"It's all reasonably peaceful and calm. Fingers crossed.''

Witnesses described the quake as "frightening" and unnerving", Sky News reports.

Sunday's quake was stronger than the 6.3 magnitude tremor which struck Christchurch in February 2011, killing 185 people.

The US Geological Survey said the quake struck under the Cook Strait 57 kilometres southwest of Wellington. It was 10 kilometres underground.

The quake could be felt hundreds of kilometres away in the centre of New Zealand's North Island.

New Zealand is part of the so-called Pacific "Ring of Fire'' that receives regular seismic activity. A severe earthquake in the city of Christchurch in 2011 killed 185 people and destroyed much of the city's downtown.

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